Working With WordPress Widgets

Before you get started working with the widgets, you first have to decide what you want to use them for. If you’re not sure how to use them, browse some other sites and see how they are using widgets in WordPress.

You’ll notice that everyone uses them differently. I’ve also seen some blogs that don’t use them at all. I’m not really sure how that happens?

Even if I wasn’t using the WordPress sidebar, you’ll notice that I still use them in the footer.

In this tutorial, I am going to be walking you through the process of adding YouTube videos, images, text, HTML and shortcode to your widgets.

So follow along and see how easy it is to add these elements to your widgets.

Adding, Videos, Images, & Text to The Text Widget

How To Add Video To A Sidebar Widget

Step 1: Grab Your YouTube Code

In order to do this, go to YouTube and grab the code. You do this by going to YouTube and then:

Click on Share >> Embed

You may have to play around with the size in order to get the video to fit on your sidebar.

Copy the code head on over to your widgets HTML text on YOUbox.

Step 2: Place The Widget In The Sidebar

We are going to be placing the video in the sidebar.

In order to accomplish this, we need to use the Text widget. Click on the widget and you will see.

We will be adding the widget to the sidebar, however you can see that you have several different options you can place the widget.

Choose sidebar and click on “Add Widget.”

Step 3: Place YouTube Code in Widget

Place that YouTube code in the widget-area. Click on Save and now you should see your video on your sidebar.

See how easy that was. If the video does not fit properly, keep playing with the dimensions on YouTube till you get it to look properly. The cool thing is that you can quickly and easily embed codes into your widgets.

Adding Images to Your Sidebar

Maybe you want to add an image to your sidebar. The Process is just as easy as adding a video.

Step 1: Upload Your Image to the Media Gallery

Go to Media >> Add New

Browse for the image on your computer and upload it to the media gallery.

Step 2: Grab the Image URL

Once you upload the image, you will see the option to click edit.

Highlight and copy the File URL link. This is the link we will be using to place the image in our sidebar.

Step 3: Use Image Source Code To Place Image

Go back to your widgets and place the link of your image using the image source code, it will look like this.

Now when you visit your blog, you should see the image you just placed. If you don’t see it, refresh it or clear your cache.

If you still don’t see it, you may want to recheck your image source code.

Add Simple Text to Your Text Widget

To add any type of plain text to your sidebar, you will be using the text widget.

Step 1: Place The Text Widget In Sidebar

Just like we’ve been doing drag and drop the text editor to your sidebar.

Step 2: Place Your Text In The Widget

Open your text widget and place your text inside of of it. If you want to give it a title, then place the title at the top.

Click Save and your text will now show up on your sidebar.

Adding Shortcode and HTML to The Sidebar

How to Add Shortcode In The Text Widget

For this tutorial I will be adding Gravity Forms shortcode to my development site.

Step 1: Add A Code Snippet to Your Functions.php

Open up your Functions.php file and place this snippet of code in your child theme.

Save your changes and then refresh your blog. You should now be able to see the shortcode that you placed in your sidebar.

Child Themes: Take your time and browse all the available child themes you can choose from. If you’re buying an individual theme, you won’t get access to all their themes.

StudioPress Pro Plus All-Theme Package: You understand that your blog is your business. It’s important for you to have access to over 90 child themes you can use in your business without paying another penny.

Genesis Features: Read through all the features before you make a buying decision. There’s nothing wrong with taking your time to do some research before you make a buying decision.

Visual Hooks Guide: Visually see the hooks in your Genesis theme. (this is for the advanced users or people who want to get more indepth with Genesis)

ShareASale: ShareASale is one of my favorite affiliate networks. It’s free to sign up and they have tons of advertisers that make it easy for any blogger to make money through affiliate marketing.

SEMRush: This tool is amazing and has helped me increase my organic traffic. It is expensive, so don’t pay for it every month. When I’m NOT using it, I’m using KWFinder to help me with my keyword research.

About Susan Velez

Hi! I'm Susan welcome to my blog. Are you ready to use the Internet and a computer to change your finances? I share tips to help you make money online through blogging, side hustles and other non-traditional methods learn moreTwitter, Facebook, Pinterest and YouTube

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